State committee approves teacher legislation

The House Education Reform Committee this week unanimously approved state Rep. Aaron Miller’s legislation to eliminate a professional teaching certification mandate, giving instructors more choice and time to work on classroom quality.

Miller said new teachers need to teach, not go back into the classroom for more studying and more testing after recently finishing college to get new certifications.

Currently, new teachers are issued a standard or provisional teaching certificate with a professional teaching certificate available to instructors with more than three years classroom experience, over 150 hours of professional development and additional post-graduate coursework. Although new teachers can renew their five-year standard or provisional certification multiple times, obtaining a professional certificate can been required as early as three years into a teacher’s career.

Miller, a licensed teacher, noted his bill is supported by the state Department of Education, along with other educational groups.

House Bill 4614 advances to the House for its consideration